Fun story about doing business in New Zealand

Once upon a time there was a New Zealand psuedo-libertarian party called ACT. Their leader thought "dopey laws and red tape" were trying to make it impossible for businesses to "succeed and flourish" in New Zealand. New Zealand is the 2nd most easiest place in the world to do business. It's above China and the USA, two of the largest economic powers in the world.

The end.

Just got done playing Deus Ex for PC

Deus Ex is a PC game release in 2001. A shooter RPG the matrix hybrid. It's about a bionical man who finds out the United Nations in 2050 is corrupt. It's using a disease, the Gray Death to control people. The poor get shafted while the rich that can pay get the cure, Ambrosia. Pretty wicked and top-notch game. I loved the voice acting, which is funny because other people laugh at it. The endings are not black and white.

There is no evil or bad ending. All the endings are their own shades of gray, proving ethics in the world aren't as simple as some might like it to be. I know I link to the United Nations in this blog and their agencies. It doesn't mean I approve of everything they do. But I think the good in them generally outweighs whatever corruption there might be. I also think the corruptions fixable.

The story's not a novel, but it's not meant to be. It's interactive and interesting, giving a lot of thought to what freedom, justice and fairness actually are in society. The game's not easy to play and requires you to work your brain. I reccomend it to anybody looking for something challenging but thought provoking. It's an old game so if you want to get it, you'll either have to buy it online or try to pirate it.

"In a society with democratic institutions the struggle for power can be peaceful and constructive, a competition of ideologies. We just need to put our institutions back in order." - JC Denton (main character)

Cutting lifelines in the name of efficiency

Let's say you're going on a long hazardous trek through the woods with your friends. You've bought some wheat bread, muesli bars and baked beans to last you all through the forest. But wait a second, your friend Alex has a wheat allergy and the things you bought all contain wheat, in some form. What would you do? Well you could bake some home-made wheat free muesli bars or bring bananas.

Unfortunately this government has gone bananas and thinks Alex should toughen up and eat the wheat like everybody else. Today in ths Sunday Star Times, one multiple rape victim speaks out against ACC funding cuts. She was told to go into therapy that would not suit her frame of mind. Though she had spent a while in counselling, everyone responds differently and she was infact recovering.

She is not alone in her protest. We deserve better than this from our government. David Wadsworth of Access Support Services is right about ACC corporate culture too: "If ACC can get out of any funding of sensitive claims claimants, they'll do it by hook or by crook, as I see it. And they're really the most vulnerable group." There are obvious cases of people ripping the system and ACC trying to prevent this. Unfortunately innocent people are caught in the crossfire. Like an insurance company wanting profit, they can end up rejecting a claimant the first time and make them go through hoops a second time. The time has passed for this hogwash to come to an end.

New Zealanders are people and ACC should act like they are.

What's Up, DOC? Conservation in the name of efficiency

NZ's Department of Conservation(DOC) plans to have more business on conservation land. They want to make reviews for businesses more "efficient" and monitor their progress on working with standards. They'd also release the progress report publicly. This seems to contrast with the last system where: "Large or small, all concessions are carefully vetted through regular reviews and public consultation. The environmental impact is a primary concern. But the department also assesses how appropriate activities are, the safety standards involved, how it impacts on other users, and the local community's view."

Well this doesn't really surprise me much since director-general Al Morrison wrote that "Conservation is good for the economy and DoC is focused on activity that is good for both." Al Morrison has been onboard DOC since 2002 and director general since 2006. But like the Auckland Supercity the public are getting less democracy in the name of efficiency. I think business and conservation can co-exist with democracy.

Stupid PC brigade, it's just a joke!

I can't believe how annoyed Tuhoe people are getting over a cannabalistic joke by our prime minister. I mean come on guys, the government only murdered your family, took your land and tried forcing you into poverty. What's so bad about calling you guys cannabals?

A sore truth in New Zealand dental care

I was watching 60 minutes about 60 minutes ago. The programme talked about problems with dental care in New Zealand. People were finding it hard to afford with one man dieing of an abcess. Dental problems don't occur just in New Zealand, they occur in Canada and Britain as well. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't do something about them.

Southland District Healthboard Director Tim McKay was on the program. When asked why things are expensive he replied(but don't quote me on this) "We are perfectionists. And we like working to the gold standard." He also said "We could do better." and "It's difficult to learn how to provide cost effective dentistry." Of course 60 minutes wouldn't show what the full interview and I think they might of wanted Tim to look like a dork. But he's right, there are problems surrounding dentistry. A dentist studies hard for five years for their licence. They'd want it to be worth their while after working as a student and having a big loan. But should this worth be in money or satisfaction from helping others? These issues don't mean we shouldn't try to make dentistry affordable.

Jim Anderton thinks we need to invest 100 million each year for effective dentistry. That comes to around $25 per person in New Zealand to have affordable dental care. Jim Anderton's often thought of as a "bludging MP" who is a labour voter who wanted extra money by being in another party. I don't always agree with him and think he should rethink his stance on marijuana. Especially after saying "Alcohol is by far the most damaging drug in the country" but not pushing for a alcohol ban. But I think he's well-intentioned, smart and has good ideas. We need solutions if we want more accessible dental care, it wont be cheap but it'll have a great payoff. He also stated how because we don't subsidise adults, they end up in our hospitals costing millions. This is partly due to people not being able to afford it.

Access to healthcare is a human right, article 25. While many of us have access to emergency care, it is not all healthcare. Just because someone can get to the emergency room doesn't mean they will be ok. They could become injured severely or die.

The young adults 18+ and the elderly in this country both have problems accessing dental care. The head of AUT's school of oral health explains that “There is a gap [for them] but there is gap for a lot of adult patients including low income earners and beneficiaries – these people are all falling through the cracks". This was in 2006 and while some strides had been made to get better oral healthcare, they couldn't be rolled out completely before the new National government.

The New Zealand Medical Journal investigated the cost of oral healthcare for the elderly. The concluded that: "Problems exist in the provision of affordable oral health care for the older population in Aotearoa New Zealand. They struggle to afford dental care. They receive little financial support to access oral healthcare services and are dependent on developing their own strategies to enable such care. Health professionals and policy decisionmakers’ challenge is to bridge this gap."

This is not an easy issue but it's only going to get worse if it isn't addressed. While National have put some preventatitive strategies in place, it doesn't mean we should ignore problems we have now.

So, have you got your procreation licence yet?

I hope I'll pass my procreation test!

"This is the short film we made for V48Hours 2010. Set in the future, the population of NZ has exploded out of control, so the government has imposed legislation meaning people must have certification before they can have sex. The next 7 minutes you will see is now set at the testing office."

It's a hilarious short film with plenty of innuendo. Good job people at my friend's church!